A hat-trick by Mahdi Humaidan earned Al Khaldiya a 6-0 win over Budaiya at the Khalifa Sports City Stadium last night, sending them to the top of the standings in the penultimate round of the Nasser Bin Hamad Premier League.
A powerful shot by Samy Frioui put Al Khaldiya ahead in the 25th minute, before Ismail Abdullatif converted from close range to extend the lead in the 34th minute. Humaidan slotted a pass from Dominic in the 41st minute to score his first goal as Al Khaldiya led 3-0 at half-time.
Humaidan made it 4-0 in the 68th minute from a Zaher Al Aghbari cross. Five minutes later, Al Aghbari added the fifth goal and Humaidan rounded off the scoring with a powerful shot in the 86th minute.
With last night’s victory, Al Khaldiya raised their tally to 41, one ahead of second-placed Manama.
Manama fell from the top spot after a 1-1 draw against East Riffa at the Shaikh Ali Bin Mohammed Al Khalifa Stadium in Arad.
Manama took the lead in the 30th minute through Mohammed Al Hallaq, but East Riffa held their nerve as Jassim Alsalama scored the equaliser in the 61st minute.
Meanwhile, Bahrain Club ruined Sitra’s title hopes with a 3-1 victory at the Al Ahli Stadium in Zinj.
Ibrhaim Khadeer scored Bahrain Club’s opening goal in the 28th minute and Naji Fathi headed home in the 42nd minute as they led 2-0 at half-time. Sitra pulled one back through Ali Al Asfour before Abdulrahman Youssef found the back of the net in additional time.
Sitra occupy third place with 37 points, four behind leaders Al Khaldiya with one more match to play.
The 21st round matches kicked off on Wednesday when Riffa sealed an impressive 4-1 victory over Al Hala after trailing 0-1. In other matches played on Wednesday, Muharraq and Al Ahli played out a goalless draw while Al Shabab held Al Hidd 2-2.
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